Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-12-19

tennle, ana al those 9muSementS which
| the young people Of our homes know SO
well how to contrive. Then there will be
the parlor socialities-groups of people
| assembled in your homes, with wit and
mimicrg and joviality, filling the room
With Joy from the door to the mantel,
and from the carpet to the ceiling. On,
is there any eXhilsration like a score OF
genial souls in one room, each one adding
contribution Of his own individual mer-
riment to the aggregation Of general
hilarity?
Suppose you want to go abroad in the
city, then you will find the panorama and
the art gallery and exquisite collections
of pictures. You will find the Metropoli-
tan museum and the Historical Society
rooms full Of rare curiosities, and scores
Of places which can stand plainly the test
OF what is right and wrong in smuse-
ments. You will find the lecturing hall,
which has been honored by the names of
Agassiz in natural history, Doremus in
chemistry, BoYnton in geology, Mitchell
in astronomy, John B. Cough in moral
| reform. and scores and hundreds Of men
who have poured their wit and genius and
ingenuity through that particular channel
upon the hearts and consciences and
inns ginations of men, setting this country
fifty years further in advance than it
would have been without the lecture
platform.
Irejoice in the popularizstion of out
door sports. hsil the croouet ground
and the fsherman's rod and the sport
mans gun. In our cities life is SO un-
healthy and unnatural that when the Gen.
sus tsker represents 8 city as having
400, 900 inhabitants, there are only $780,
00e, since it takes at least two men to
amount to one man, SO depicting and I'M
nerving and exhausting is this metropoli-
tan life. We want more fresh sir, more
sunlight, more of the abandon of field
sports. cry out for it in behalf of the
church of God as well as in behalf Of
secular interests. I wish that this winter
our ponds and our rivers and our Capt.
toline grounds might be all aquake with
the heel and the shout of the swift skater.
| wish when the warm weather comes,
the graceful oar might dip the stream,
and the eyening-tide be resonant with
bostman's song, the bright PROV splitting
the crystalline billow. We shall have the
smooth and grassy lawn, and we will call
out people of ell occupations and pro-
LESSONS, and ask them to join in the ball
players sport. You will come back from
these outdoor exercises and recreations
with strength in your arm, and color in
your cheek, and a
FLASH IN YOUR EYE,
and courage in your heart. In this great
battle that is opening against the king
dom Of darkness we want not only con-
secrsted soul, but strong arm and stout
lungs and mighty muscle. l bless God
that there are so many recreations that
have not on them any faint of iniquity
recreations in which we may engage for
the strengthening Of the body, for the
clearing of the intellect, for the illumina-
ton Of the soul.
There is still another form of recrea-
ton which I commend to you, and that
is the pleasure of doing good. l have
seen young men, weak and cross and sour
snd repeling in their disposition, who
by one heavenly touch have Wakened up
and become blessed and buoyant, the
ground under their feet and the sky over
their heads breaking forth into music.
"Oh," says some young man in the house
to-day, "I should like that recreation
shove all others, but l have not the
means" My dear brother. let Us take
an account Of stock this morning. You
have large estate, II you only realize it.
Two hands. Two feet. You will have,
perhaps, during the next year at least $40
for charitable contribution. You will
have $500 cheerful looks, If you want to
employ them. You will have 5000 pleas
ant words, if you want to speak them.
Now what an amount that is to start
with!
You 20 out tomorrow morning and
you see case Of real restitution by the
way-side. You give him cents. The
blind man hears the pennies rattle in his
hat, and he ssys: "Thank you, sir; God
bless you" You pass down the street,
trying to look indifferently; but you feel
from the very depth of your soul pro-
found satisfaction that you made that
man happy. You 60 on still farther, and
find poor boy with wheelbarrow, try
ing to get it up on the curbstone He
fails in the attempt. You, say, "Stand
back, my lad; let me try" You push 1t
up on the curbstone for him, and pass
on. He wonders who that well dressed
man was that helped him. You did a
kindness to the boy, but you did great
Joy to your own soul. You will not get
over it all the week.
On the street, to morrow morning, you
will see a sick man passing along. "Ah,"
you say, "what can do to make this
man happy? He certainly does not want
money; he is not poor, but ne is sick. I"
Give him one of those twenty-five hun
dred cheerful locks that you have gar
nered up for the whole year. Look Joy
and hopefulness into his soul. It will
thrill him through, and there will be a
reaction upon your own soul. Going q
little farther Oh, you will come to the
store of friend who is embarrassed in
business matters. You will 60 in and
say, "What fine store you have! 1
think business will brighten up, and you
will have more custom after while. l
think there is coming q great prosperity
to sll the country. Good-mornlRg."
You pass out You have helped
that young man, and you have
helped yourself And that night you go
home; you sit by the fire, you talk lit
tie, you sing little, You laugh little;
you say, al really don't know what is
the matter with me. 1 never felt SO
splendidly in my life" will tell
WHAT Is THE MATTER WITH YOU.